Dan Mason on juicy zombies and working on the fly

Texture artist and modeller Dan Mason will give a talk next week at HP ZED Paris. We chat to him to find out more.

Shares

This article is brought to you in association with Masters of CG, a new competition that offers the chance to work with one of 2000AD's most iconic characters. There are big prizes to be won, so enter today!

Previously head of texturing at Cinesite, Dan Mason has spent the last nine months working at visual effects house Framestore as a senior texture artist and modeller. And although it's a high-pressure environment, he's enjoyed every minute of it.

"Working here is great," he enthuses. "I find that they've cultivated a friendly and motivating atmosphere to work in, which is really nice. Plus the place is filled with talented people who are always willing to share their knowledge.

When I look back," continues Dan - who's a judge in our Masters of CG competiton - "I feel proud of the environment work that I did on Prince of Persia, as it was my first show modelling and texturing hero assets.

Work on zombies for World War Z

"I really enjoyed working on World War Z as well, as I got my hands on some really juicy zombie work, which was great fun."

"I'm currently working on Guardians of the Galaxy which is looking very cool, and I'm really excited to see the finished shots that Framestore produce."

Modelling work on Prince of Persia was Mason's first task at Framestore

Mason has also done a lot of work on concepts and pitch projects, which he describes as "really interesting and enjoyable, as things are constantly in flux.

"This means that you often have to come up with ideas on the fly, within a short timespan, which pushes you creatively. It can also be a welcome opportunity to use my illustration skills, which I don't get to do every day."

The talk

Dan Mason will join Cinesite's James Stone at HP ZED Paris on 11 April

Keen to give back to the community, Mason will be joining James Stone, Head of Assets at Cinesite, to give a talk at the free event HP ZED Paris on Friday 11 April.

"James and I will be covering the process of creating a high resolution digital double," Mason explains. "We'll be looking at how we do this within a film production pipeline, detailing the steps needed to create a model that will stand up to full screen scrutiny."

Mason enjoys speaking at events for a number of reasons, he adds. "It's something totally different from my day job, and I find that speaking to a crowd of people is challenging in a good way, as it forces you to consolidate your knowledge of what you do.

"It's also a good opportunity to meet other people within the industry and share your experiences."

Masters of CG is an exciting new competition for EU residents that offers you the one-in-a-lifetime chance to work with one of 2000AD's most iconic characters: Rogue Trooper.

We invite you to form a team (of up to four participants) and tackle as many of our four categories as you wish - Title Sequence, Main Shots, Film Poster or Idents. For full details of how to enter and to get your Competition Information Pack, head to the Masters of CG website now.